24" Bike Suggestions

Nate2o1

Nate2o1

Member
So, I'm in the market for a 24" Mountain Bike for my son, And I need help deciding or narrowing down some bikes. My budget will be roughly 1000 but I would definitely prefer to spend half of that cuz well, he says he wants to ride but who knows really. Anyway, right now hes riding a Bmx bike so he doesn't really take it on mountain bike trails. He has used it on smooth rail trails and such but nothing exiting. He's short! 11 years old, 54 inches and roughly 70 Lbs. I would have loved to skip the 24" but a bigger bike on him just wouldn't work. He can "ride" a 27.5" but he can't ride it like its supposed to be ridden. Anyway, I've been trying to do my research and saw several bikes with the Components that I want on the bike. I'm looking for hardtail, Air front fork and hydraulic disk brakes 10/11 speeds, trigger snifter. Also I need the bike to be kid specific as he is small. There are hundreds of adult bikes but only a handful of "real" kids mountain bikes. These are just a few of the bikes that caught my eyes. Diamondback Sync'r 24, Commencal Meta HT 24, Nukeproof CubScout Race 24. Out of these three, I am leaning towards the Nukeproof CubScout Race as it seems to have the best components and specs (I could be and probably am wrong). and I am very hesitant as it is a brand new bike from Nukeproof and no US distributors/support. Any comments, suggestions, advice, criticism is welcome. I want to be able to ride with little man sooner than later. I'm in no big hurry to purchase the bike but I would like to get it within the next few months.
 
Take a look at the Trek Superfly 26. There might even be a used one or two floating around the forum.
 
Found the link on CL, a little left field but the size is right and there’s no pink or purple on it. ?

I was thinking used but there’s not a ton of high quality stuff out there in the size. But used kids bikes sell for dirt cheap.

there’s a salsa Timberjack kids but it’s quite the spec you want.

newjersey.craigslist.org

trek lush 29 -- women's mountain bike - bicycles - by owner - bike...

size 14 -- see full specs here...
newjersey.craigslist.org
 
Nate2o1 said:
So, I'm in the market for a 24" Mountain Bike for my son, And I need help deciding or narrowing down some bikes. My budget will be roughly 1000 but I would definitely prefer to spend half of that cuz well, he says he wants to ride but who knows really. Anyway, right now hes riding a Bmx bike so he doesn't really take it on mountain bike trails. He has used it on smooth rail trails and such but nothing exiting. He's short! 11 years old, 54 inches and roughly 70 Lbs. I would have loved to skip the 24" but a bigger bike on him just wouldn't work. He can "ride" a 27.5" but he can't ride it like its supposed to be ridden. Anyway, I've been trying to do my research and saw several bikes with the Components that I want on the bike. I'm looking for hardtail, Air front fork and hydraulic disk brakes 10/11 speeds, trigger snifter. Also I need the bike to be kid specific as he is small. There are hundreds of adult bikes but only a handful of "real" kids mountain bikes. These are just a few of the bikes that caught my eyes. Diamondback Sync'r 24, Commencal Meta HT 24, Nukeproof CubScout Race 24. Out of these three, I am leaning towards the Nukeproof CubScout Race as it seems to have the best components and specs (I could be and probably am wrong). and I am very hesitant as it is a brand new bike from Nukeproof and no US distributors/support. Any comments, suggestions, advice, criticism is welcome. I want to be able to ride with little man sooner than later. I'm in no big hurry to purchase the bike but I would like to get it within the next few months.
Click to expand...

@jdog - opinions?
 
Transition makes the Ripcord, which is a pretty well spec’d dual suspension 24” bike. It’s pricey though, I think it starts at $1699 MSRP.

www.transitionbikes.com

Transition Bikes

The Ripcord is a legit full suspension 24
www.transitionbikes.com
 
Patrick said:
@jdog - opinions?
Click to expand...

At $999 or below, id look closely at the fire mtn. It is one of the few 26" wheeled bikes on the market.

www.konaworld.com

Fire Mountain

This Kona classic brings some of the finer things to light. The Fire Mountain is running a smooth-shifting 9-speed drivetrain to keep things manageable across varying terrain and hydraulic disc brakes to stop on a dime. With 100mm of adjustable suspension and sturdy tires aboard wider 27mm rims...
www.konaworld.com www.konaworld.com

My daughter is 7. She is tall for her age but she is comfortably riding a 24"

I can't imagine how a 11 yr old might need a 24".

Glad to work with this young rider and figure out the sizing.
 
Ok, so most of the recommendations are for 26" bikes. I would love to skip a size and save some money but as I said, my son is SMALL. He is only 52 inches tall and his inseam is only 22". That is 4'4". He is small for his age. Me myself am only 5'4 and im 45! So that is why I am looking for a 24" bike. As I mentioned, he is capable of riding a 27.5 but will he be able to handle it on the trails. No. I want him to enjoy the trails not fight his bike and be discouraged because the bike is the wrong fit. We buy bikes according to OUR size, why skimp out for our kids? So unless there's a lightweight xxs bike, then I have to look for a 24"
 
My son is 11 and is still on a 24”.
Orbea MX24 Trail
Air fork
1x10
hydraulic brakes
BE8B2947-727D-4F13-87A0-F2B73B58BB02.jpeg
661DBF65-E480-41CB-AFE3-2BDD0BF38AFE.jpeg
 
Nate2o1 said:
Ok, so most of the recommendations are for 26" bikes. I would love to skip a size and save some money but as I said, my son is SMALL. He is only 52 inches tall and his inseam is only 22". That is 4'4". He is small for his age. Me myself am only 5'4 and im 45! So that is why I am looking for a 24" bike. As I mentioned, he is capable of riding a 27.5 but will he be able to handle it on the trails. No. I want him to enjoy the trails not fight his bike and be discouraged because the bike is the wrong fit. We buy bikes according to OUR size, why skimp out for our kids? So unless there's a lightweight xxs bike, then I have to look for a 24"
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I’d look closely at the 24” cujo from cannondale. I can sell the 19’ version for $499 instead of $749.


this is a 24” x 3” tire setup. It’s also no n suspension corrected so the stack stands low.
The issue w most 24” bikes is that the forks are crap.
With the 24” x 3” tires you ou can run super low psi and the bike ends up being 2-3 lbs lighter.

I went with the 24” Kona process for my daughter for the reason that it can also take 26” wheels in the future. This bike is 2x your budget though

best of luck and look out for pre-nica rides this spring at 6mr on the nica race loop with 7-12ish yr old kids.
F1FD6262-63D9-4E56-8E73-88099ACED726.png
 
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@MadisonDan that orbea looks nice but seems to be discontinued. They only make 27.5mx now.
@jdog my nephew has the cujo 24. It has cable dis brakes, and twist shifter. Which i definately want to stay away from. I agree about the tires. I bought my 6 now 7 year old son a Trek Roscoe 20 and run his tires at about 6psi. Here loves that thing. I really like the Kona Process, hell i want the new 134. But i want to keep it around my price range for the fact that i don't know if he will really like it.
 
jdog said:
I’d look closely at the 24” cujo from cannondale. I can sell the 19’ version for $499 instead of $749.


this is a 24” x 3” tire setup. It’s also no n suspension corrected so the stack stands low.
The issue w most 24” bikes is that the forks are crap.
With the 24” x 3” tires you ou can run super low psi and the bike ends up being 2-3 lbs lighter.

I went with the 24” Kona process for my daughter for the reason that it can also take 26” wheels in the future. This bike is 2x your budget though

best of luck and look out for pre-nica rides this spring at 6mr on the nica race loop with 7-12ish yr old kids.View attachment 120545
Click to expand...
watching this thread with interest. Need to get a 24” mtb soon. We rented Cujo’s in the 20” size for our smaller dudes out in Bend this summer and they were waaaay heavy compared to their current 20” bikes but the 3” tires were very confidence inspiring on the dusty loose central OR trails. I could see how that setup would work great on roots and rocks.
 
I’m kicking myself for not buying a barely used Trailcraft I saw posted someplace else a few months ago.

I dunno. I like the idea of 3” tires without suspension but I also feel bad making a small human ride a bike that weighs more than my XC race bike.
 
Agreed. Most bike manufacturers focus on adult bikes as though those adults won't have kids that they want to enjoy the sport with. It's a shame really. And i just don't understand why a kids bike cost just as much as an adult bike and weight more.
 
I would highly recommend taking a look at the Giant xtc jr+ bikes. Hydraulic brakes and not having to deal with the twist shifters is HUGE at this age.
They also make a 26+ version which might be of interest since he is roughly the same size as my son who probably has another year or so on this bike before he has to upgrade. The lack of suspension is nice for keeping things light when ridding around the neighborhood, but wish there was an option for a suspension fork when riding trails.

www.giant-bicycles.com

XTC Jr 24 + (2020) | bike | Giant Bicycles US

The XtC Jr. 24+ is designed to give young riders more confidence and control. Featuring a lightweight ALUXX aluminum frame with a low stand-over height and geometry designed for smaller bodies, it has stable handling to...
www.giant-bicycles.com www.giant-bicycles.com
 
My son loves his Transition Ripcord. You may be able to find one on the used market since kids grow out of them so quickly.
 
Nate2o1 said:
@MadisonDan that orbea looks nice but seems to be discontinued. They only make 27.5mx now.
@jdog my nephew has the cujo 24. It has cable dis brakes, and twist shifter. Which i definately want to stay away from. I agree about the tires. I bought my 6 now 7 year old son a Trek Roscoe 20 and run his tires at about 6psi. Here loves that thing. I really like the Kona Process, hell i want the new 134. But i want to keep it around my price range for the fact that i don't know if he will really like it.
Click to expand...
Hmmm.... didn’t realize that. I thing he’s been on it for two years now. Little dude hasn’t hit his growth spurt yet. Could be a few months, could be another year. Sounds like you’re looking for the now.
@Delish keep an eye out, if the timing above makes cents for you.
 
Nate2o1 said:
@MadisonDan that orbea looks nice but seems to be discontinued. They only make 27.5mx now.
@jdog my nephew has the cujo 24. It has cable dis brakes, and twist shifter. Which i definately want to stay away from. I agree about the tires. I bought my 6 now 7 year old son a Trek Roscoe 20 and run his tires at about 6psi. Here loves that thing. I really like the Kona Process, hell i want the new 134. But i want to keep it around my price range for the fact that i don't know if he will really like it.
Click to expand...

This bike has hydro disc brakes and Deore shifters.

We can do them for $499 while they still have stock.

www.rei.com

Cannondale Kids' Mountain Bikes | REI Co-op

Shop for Cannondale Kids' Mountain Bikes at REI - FREE SHIPPING With $50 minimum purchase. Curbside Pickup Available NOW! 100% Satisfaction Guarantee
www.rei.com www.rei.com
 
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